Santorum's Donut

I've been trying for some time to envision how a Supreme Court decision legalizing same-sex marriage would affect my "traditional marriage". I finally found the answer via a donut. Contrary to what former Senator Rick Santorum might imagine - or actually believe - I did not presume that "gay marriage" would somehow pave the way to a bigamous union with this or any other  form of fried dough. Superficial as it may sound, the answer was a matter of appearances. Looking down at that sinfully delicious item on my plate, it was obvious. Zero - the answer was zero. A legal decision allowing consenting adults who love each other - or, at least, believe they do in that moment - doesn't diminish my marriage one bit. At times I wonder how much of the opposition stems not from misguided yet sincere religious conviction but rather the fear that the thousands and thousands of gay couples who've stayed together - sometimes for decades - despite decades of discrimination will make them look bad. Of course, people couldn't be that shallow, could they?

Tasty

I think it's high time for an honest conversation on the topic of taste. Just as the reception of artistic expression is thoroughly subjective, all such expression is thoroughly manipulative. Consequently, the fact that someone finds something that's hugely popular to be hugely terrible as well does not necessarily mean that this person has better artistic judgment. It merely means that they're not susceptible to that particular form of manipulation. We confuse our personal tastes with quantifiable quality at our own risk, especially when we seek to make those tastes fundamental parts of our identity. With that said, should I listen to David Bowie's album Never Let Me Down or watch The Phantom Menace again?